Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of supportive therapy by natural polyphenols combined with vitamins C and E on kidney function and risk factors of cardiovascular diseases in renal transplant recipients (RTR).
Background: Transplant patients have an altered lipid profile associated with the development of cardiovascular disease, which is a major cause of graft loss and mortality in patients.
Methods: The study included 29 renal transplant recipients with mean graft function levels. The lipoprotein (atherogenic and non-atherogenic) subfractions were identified and quantified in plasma by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.
Results: After supplementation, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was increased by 8 %, serum creatinine was decreased by 6.7 % and significant changes were found in atherogenic LDL subfractions. The effect of supplementation was observed in arylesterase and lactonase activities of paraoxonase 1 which increased by 9.3 % and 8.1 %, respectively. In addition, significantly decreased levels of neopterin (by 16 %) and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) (by 7.9 %) were found.
Conclusion: We could summarize that supportive therapy improves the renal function (GFR, serum creatinine), and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease by affecting important risk markers of atherosclerosis (lipid profile, paraoxonase 1 activity, neopterin and ADMA) in RTR (Tab. 4, Fig. 1, Ref. 53).
Keywords: Lipoprint System Pycnogenol.; kidney transplantation; lipoprotein subfractions.